Number one best-seller Tony Parsons and Berkhamsted children’s author Sue Hampton to line up new book festival

Tony Parsons. PA Photo/David Levenson

Berkhamsted author Sue Hampton is to line up alongside best-selling novelist Tony Parsons at the first Flamstead Book Festival next Saturday.

Books in the Belfry - in the medieval setting of St.Leonard’s Church in the Hertfordshire village of Flamstead - will also feature top children’s writers Jonathan Stroud, Dawn Finch and Pete Johnson along with biographer Clare Mulley, whose account of Britain’s first female spy in World War Two has been met with critical acclaim.

Sue, who lives in Berkhamsted with her husband Leslie Tate, worked as a teacher before pursuing a career in writing. The author of 18 books for children and young adults will be hosting a fun creative writing workshop for teenagers at the Festival.

There will be a session on sports writing with former Premier League footballer Steve Claridge and referee Mark Halsey, chaired by St Albans author Ian Ridley who ghosted their autobiographies and a panel of successful authors giving advice on how to publish your own book.

Parsons, best known for his novel Man and Boy, is moving in a new direction with the publication this month of his first crime thriller The Murder Bag. It went into the charts this week as the number one bestselling fiction book.

Festival co-organiser Vikki Orvice said: “We’re excited about the line-up, especially that we’ve managed to persuade the biggest selling author in the country at the moment to come along to our small village as well as wanting to encourage local writers to take part too.

“We hope many people in the area will come along and support Books in the Belfry. We’ve made sure there is something for everyone in the programme and it promises to be lots of fun, whatever age you are.”

All the authors will be holding signing sessions with Waterstones selling books on the day.